Goods/Services

Do you ever open your closet to find a few items you wear and a few dozen that you don't? Or do you, in the process of cleaning out the garage, find chemicals or lawn care products you just don't use anymore?

"There is no beauty in the finest cloth if it makes hunger and unhappiness."

-Gandhi

Swap-O-Rama-Rama is an egalitarian project, a giant clothing swap and series of do-it-yourself (DIY) workshops in which communities explore reuse through the reconstruction of used clothing. Swap-O-Rama-Rama's are making their way around the world one community at a time.

Each day the U.S. throws away enough trash to fill 63,000 garbage trucks; the average person creates 4.39 pounds per day or 56 tons each year. Although I have always considered this fact and tried to tread as lightly as possible, everything changed after my son was born. With the threat of global warming and the fact that each day we seem to be toxifying the space we live, it scared me to think what mess would be left behind for the children in his generation.

Use this guide when planning any event from an office meeting to a large public event. To download this list online, visit doitgreen.org.

Reducing Waste Planning

Purge mailing lists to eliminate invalid addresses or duplicate mailings.

Paper: Use backsides of paper for drafts, use paper with recycled content and print double-sided for all event materials.

Consider the following publicity efforts to reduce waste:

print on recycled paper

use a printer that offers soy or vegetable inks

Hemp for Victory Many hemp activists claim that if hemp was allowed to grow and enter the market freely in the U.S. and elsewhere, it could cure just about everything that is ailing our planet. Despite hemp fiber's superior strength and versatility, the potential of hemp fabric, derived from the stem fibers, has yet to be fully discovered.

We are entering an age where concern for health and the environment is driving consumers to affect change with their financial decisions. Green retailers and businesses are specially suited to serve the "Cultural Creative" consumer, a market comprising 50 million individuals, or 26% of the U.S. population, according to sociologist and author Paul H. Ray, Ph.D.

Ten Things You SHOULD BUY to Stop Waste & Save Money

1. Reusable Shopping Bags: paper bags are made of virgin paper and plastic bags are not degradable
2. Faucet Aerator: reduces the water flow by half
3. Rechargeable Batteries: batteries release heavy metals into the soil
4. Compact Fluorescent Light Bulbs: a 60 watt incandescent will last for 750 hours; a compact will generate the same light and burn for 7500 hours

If we ask anybody to characterize the 21st Century, they might say that it is the age of technology, but also the age of pollution resulting from all of this technological progress.

The present day pollution is actually mostly caused by the activities from our daily life – from what we eat to what we wear.